On October 21st, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that during this year’s raids targeting illegal growers across California, law enforcement seized over $350 million worth of illegal marijuana. The goal of the enforcement agencies was to protect California’s legal marijuana market.
According to a press release from Bonta’s office, nearly 800,000 illegal marijuana plants have been eradicated, with over 100,000 pounds of processed marijuana seized, and 282 individuals arrested in 36 counties, along with the confiscation of 201 weapons. These operations are part of the “Eradicating and Preventing Illicit Cannabis” (EPIC) program, a collaboration between federal and state agencies. The EPIC program aims to prevent environmental damage, economic impacts, and labor exploitation caused by illegal marijuana businesses.
In Riverside County, enforcement officers were particularly busy, uncovering 136,601 marijuana plants from 79 locations. Additionally, officers raided 98 sites in Siskiyou County, seizing 67,943 plants; and in Shasta County, they raided 67 locations and found 51,289 plants. Bonta stated, “California has the largest safe, legal, and regulated marijuana market in the world, but unfortunately, illegal and unlicensed marijuana cultivation continues to grow.”
EPIC focuses on environmental damages, so officers entered state parks where dangerous chemicals infiltrated waterways, damaging the once pristine environment. With California boasting 1.59 million acres of state forest parks, State Park Enforcement Assistant Director Jeremy Stinson highlighted, “Unfortunately, illegal marijuana cultivation poses a serious threat to these lands, with over 400 locations documented.”
Officers also discovered toxic chemicals, including pesticides like Carbofuran and Methamidophos, as well as illegal chemical fertilizers. The press release noted, “Carbofuran, in particular, poses immeasurable risks to public health. It is a deadly pesticide that is effectively banned in the United States but persists on plants after application, leaching into soil and nearby water sources.”
In 2024, the EPIC team conducted 665 operations in Northern, Central, and Southern California, dismantling and removing infrastructure, including dams, water pipes, and containers of toxic chemicals. San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus stated in the EPIC announcement, “There is still a long way to go for marijuana enforcement in California to ensure that illegal marijuana does not enter the legal market.”
Here are the top 10 counties with the most illegal marijuana eradicated during EPIC raids among the 36 counties inspected:
– Riverside County: 79 locations, 136,601 plants;
– Mendocino County: 116 locations, 133,702 plants eradicated;
– Kern County: 60 locations, 89,819 plants eradicated;
– Siskiyou County: 98 locations, 67,943 plants eradicated;
– Fresno County: 31 locations, 52,796 plants eradicated;
– Shasta County: 67 locations, 51,289 plants eradicated;
– Sacramento County: 13 locations, 46,042 plants eradicated;
– Lake County: 48 locations, 42,776 plants eradicated;
– Trinity County: 38 locations, 32,381 plants eradicated;
– Nevada County: 33 locations, 28,428 plants eradicated.
On October 22nd, Governor Newsom’s office announced that since July, the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Task Force (UCETF) in California has seized illegal marijuana worth $70.7 million. This year, UCETF’s seizures in 13 counties totaled over $191 million, a result of state agencies actively targeting organized criminal marijuana enterprises as directed by Newsom.
Bill Jones, head of the Enforcement Division of the California Bureau of Cannabis Control, stated, “This quarter targeted unlicensed marijuana operators abusing the California marijuana universal symbol on packaging.” He emphasized, “This deceptive practice can confuse consumers and put them at risk.”
According to the state’s press release, since its establishment in 2022, UCETF has seized and destroyed over 162 tons of illegal marijuana, estimated to be worth approximately $536 million.
In 2016, California voters approved the legalization of recreational marijuana for adults aged 21 and over.